Firefighters are the heroes of hour, and have worked fearlessly and indefatigably to contain the five fires that raged over Southern California last week, wiping out entire communities like Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and Altadena. But it is not just the firefighters’ ability to push back a wall of fire to limit its spread, and think and work strategically, it is also their unmatched commitment to, as much as it is within their power, save all living creatures. Along with wiping out flames and seeking to save property, these champions have gone out of their way to rescue as many animals as they can in the midst of doing the other work. The rescued dogs and the firefighters that had compassion for them, is the subject of this week’s Feel-Good Friday.
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Thanks to Brent Pascua, a Cal Fire battalion chief on the scene of the Palisades Fire, Pacific Palisades resident Casey Colvin experienced the joy of reuniting with his beloved dogs who he feared were lost in the fire. Colvin was at work on January 6, when he received the alert that his house was under evacuation order, and his dogs Tika and Oreo were still in the home. The next day, in the search for the injured or survivors, Cal Fire battalion chief Brent Pascua entered the rubble of Colvin’s home, and found the dogs were alive, albeit traumatized. Pascua was able to retrieve Tika, but Oreo ran away and went missing for five days.
Tika and Colvin were reunited, but it wasn’t until Colvin was permitted to come back to his neighborhood and assess the damage of what was once his home that a distraught, tearful Colvin experienced what was nothing short of a miracle.
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The transformation from abject grief to pure joy is a tear jerker, as well as the ecstatic delight on Colvin’s face and the relief from his pets as they snuggle in his arms.
At the height of the Eaton Fire in Altadena, another firefighting hero went above and beyond for a distressed pet surrounded by the flames. Unbeknownst to him, the firefighter had other helpers who were instrumental in getting the dog out of the fire zone to safety. A photojournalist named Nic Coury captured the tender and powerful moments.
It was a close call for a dog named Max when fire raged through his Altadena neighborhood. The brindle-coated Corso mix hid, huddled and scared, under some bushes in his yard as the Eaton fire ravaged his street. Firefighters and photojournalists in the area could hear his terrified barks. As if the situation wasn’t dire enough, an explosion went off in a nearby garage.
A distressed Max wandered the streets, terrified, barking when a firefighter, still battling the blaze, managed to get the dog to his side.
Slater Lee, a firefighter who has only been with the San Marcos Fire Department for six months and is still on probationary status, heard Max’s cries for help and gained the scared dog’s trust with a few gentle pets on the head.
At the same time, freelance photographer Gabe Cortez was also on the scene. He knew he had to get Max out of there immediately. He refused to leave Max and stayed with him for an hour and a half until rescue came. He scrolled through his contacts from the animal rescue world, searching for help. When he came upon dog trainer Christopher Abkarian, who he had never met before, he texted him to inform him of this dog’s desperate circumstances.
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Christopher Abkarian and his wife Sasha are the owners of the Whittier Dog Club, which had not yet opened for business when the Eaton fire broke out.
They hadn’t even opened the doors to the facility when the fires started and decided to open early to accommodate dogs in need. Because of this, they had the space to take in dogs displaced from the fires and a Sprinter van to transport them. Not licensed for cats, their focus became taking in as many dogs as possible and boarding and training them for free.
Abkarian took Max back to the dog club, where all the other dogs Abkarian had rescued were there to greet him. What transpired after Max’s rescue, and the release of the photos and footage by Nic Coury and Gabe Cortez, is a powerful ray of hope in the midst of the hopelessness.
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